[The Novel] School Bus Graveyard

Them

"Can we open the back door?"

Ashlyn's eyes kept darting from the phantom to the people behind her as she continued to rack her brain for ways out of this situation.

"It's blocked!" Tyler helpfully informed her, ramming his shoulder into the door uselessly.

"W-what do we do?" Logan whimpered, shaking violently.

"Die?"

"Aiden!"

Ashlyn resisted the urge to throw the boy as a distraction for the phantom so the rest of them could get out as she glared at him. But she quickly whipped her gaze back to the phantom when she saw it move in her peripheral.

Its body twitched as it began to sink to the ground, its eyes never breaking from where they stood cowering.

Is it having a seizure or something? Ashlyn thought, hearing someone behind her gag as the phantom's body popped. Its claws scrapped against the metal ground, grating against her ears in the most unpleasant way it could before falling absolutely still.

In a way, it reminded Ashlyn of that scene in Lion King, where Simba was learning how to hunt– oh.

The phantom's jaw dropped open as it screeched loudly, like nails on a chalkboard, and lunged.

Everyone somehow squeezed closer as they screamed in horror. Ashlyn's hands instinctively went up to cover her ears, the earplugs no match for the choir of screams echoing throughout the bus.

Aiden wrapped his arms around Ashlyn, squeezing her into his chest as he screamed for his life.

Throughout all the chaos and cries, Ashlyn could make out the faint beeping of a watch before the feeling of nausea crept up on her.

Just as the phantom's claws were about to make contact, suddenly there was nothing. Chipped paint and fogged-up windows housed no more screams, no more anomalies in a dimension that wasn't theirs.

Ashlyn shot up from her bed, biting her tongue before she could continue screaming. But her body still managed to get out a loud gasp as dizziness took over.

She blinked down at her army print bedcovers until her vision stopped spinning. Holding her head in her hands, she tried to stop herself from hyperventilating.

Shivers and trembles attacked her body, sweat covered her from head to toe as she fanned out her shirt. The image of that stupid phantom lunging at them with its unsettling grin, ready to tear into their flesh– God.

Wiping away the tears that began to prick her eyes, she sighed as her body began to calm down. "Too close. Way too close," She whispered, bundling her hair in her fist and holding it away from the nape of her neck.

Several seconds passed when her phone began to buzz on her bedside table. Letting her hair fall back down, she tiredly reached for her phone after contemplating ignoring it.

Her screen flash-banged her as she groaned, squinting until she turned the brightness down. The clock read 12:01 AM.

Ashlyn readjusted herself as she read back the message of Logan asking if everyone was okay.

She thought it was a dumb question, but she knew Logan didn't mean it like that.

Sending a thumbs up, she stared blankly at her DDR mat in the corner of her room until the next message popped up.

Them.

Aiden: Lol that was close 12:02 am

Taylor: Physically yes 12:03 am

Tyler: Mentally no 12:03 am

Ben: Did anyone finish the homework? 12:04 am

Ashlyn's eyes deadpanned the last message and slowly turned to look at the pile of books stacked by her bedside table. She had been putting off reading those chapters for weeks, especially with this whole fiasco they had going on. She had totally forgotten that they had an essay due on the latest chapters on Monday... which was tomorrow– or, if you want to be that person- today.

Ashlyn typed out a quick message before throwing her phone onto her bed and decidedly flopping onto her pillow, throwing ber covers over herself.. Her back faced the looming homework as she forced herself to try and get some proper sleep.

It wasn't going to happen, but a girl could dream, right?

Me: Screw it. 12:06 am

Tyler: ^ 12:06 am

Taylor: ^ 12:06 am

—

Ashlyn could swear she felt her spirit and will to live float away as the bus pulled up to her stop. Clutching her backpack strap and her lifeline, (her coffee) she trudged onto the bus.

Looking anywhere but at the boy sitting behind her usual seat, she tossed her backpack down before falling lifelessly into her chair.

"Hey, Ash," Aiden smiled, eyebags greeting her as he leaned over her seat. "Last night was rough, huh?"

Ashlyn and Ben both responded by numbly hitting their heads against the window, wishing that it were their pillows.

Aiden looked her over before smirking and rummaging through his backpack. Ashlyn could hear the ungodly crinkling of crumbled-up and squashed papers begging to be set free until he found what he was looking for. Why did he refuse to use folders?

"I finished the homework," He said, lounging over her seat as he waved the paper in front of her. "Wanna copy?"

How on earth does this guy do it? She thought as she mumbled a thanks before taking the paper. Does he just have this much energy naturally? How?

Aiden smiled sweetly as Ashlyn took her own homework out and began to write, cursing each bump in the road all the way to school.

Mr. Thomas hummed as he set down his book on his podium happily, turning to greet his students walking in– oh dear.

He could practically feel the gloom coming off the trio as they stumbled inside.

"Good... morning...?"

They're like this every morning now, do they stay up all night? What are freshmen up to these days? He briefly thought back to how this specific group, untalkative as some of them may be, would always make sure to greet him walking into class.

Now...well, not so much. Mr. Thomas flashed them a worried smile as they took their seats. "Everyone get out your homework please," he sighed.

Ashlyn shot up from her desk when she was rudely awakened by her school bell, her arms tingling and numb.

She looked at the clock over the door, wincing as she realized she slept through class. Again. Looking over her shoulder at the rest of her classmates, she felt just a bit better knowing by the dead looks on their faces, that she wasn't the only one.

At this rate, we're gonna fail, she thought, mindlessly rubbing the corners of her mouth free from any drool. But it's not like there's much you can do in our situation.

Grabbing her unopened textbook from beneath her desk, she pushed her chair back and stuffed it carelessly in her backpack, yawning.

"Ashlyn!"

She was met with the group all fighting to stay awake (besides Aiden). "We're all eating lunch together," he said, leaning in and covering one side of his face as he whispered. "Y'know, to talk about 'stuff'."

Ashlyn mourned the chance to find a quiet spot in the corner of the lunchroom to sleep in as she replied in agreement.

He always says that "stuff" when we're talking about phantoms, he makes it sound like we're about to trade drugs. Shouldering her backpack on, she followed them out of the classroom. When she saw Tyler giving his sister a certain look making Taylor shake her head, she began to mentally prepare herself for the next thirty minutes.

This is gonna end well.